Chelsea have booked their spot in the final of the 2025 Club World Cup with a relatively straightforward win against the last South American side in the competition. In the semi final, in New Jersey, they beat Brazilian outfit Fluminense 2-0, thanks to a brace from one of their newest acquisitions, João Pedro.
Pedro is from São Paolo in Brazil, but came through the ranks at Rio’s Fluminense, so this game will have meant a huge amount to the 23-year-old. It was at Fluminense that he was converted from a defensive midfielder into the attacking player the Blues paid around £60m to sign him from Brighton.
The former Watford striker paid a large part of that fee back with his double salvo at the MetLife Stadium, with his side now guaranteed in excess of £80m from the Club World Cup. That figure will rise to over £100m if the Blues can triumph in the final, where they will face current UEFA Champions League champions Paris Saint-Germain, who defeated Real Madrid 4-0 in the other semi final.
Image: Thecoolone1223 via Wikimedia Commons.
Is Pedro the Missing Piece of the Chelsea Jigsaw?
Chelsea have, notoriously, spent a fortune in the transfer market since Todd Boehly’s consortium bought the club. They have lavished that cash on players in just about every position but they have been particularly profligate in terms of the forwards they have signed. And yet, somehow, until now at least, the key goalscorer has seemed like the most obvious missing piece in the puzzle.
Beach to the Bridge. Joao Pedro is here! 🏖️ pic.twitter.com/wT3RUNLnUS
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 2, 2025
Cole Palmer was their top scorer in the Premier League in 2024/25 but he notched just 15 times, with four of those coming from the penalty spot. Their next-best was Nicolas Jackson and he managed just 10 goals, the same as Pedro scored for Brighton, but from three more games than the Brazilian. And two fewer than another of Chelsea’s additions up front for 2025/26, Liam Delap.
Enzo Maresca currently has Pedro, Jackson, Delap, Christopher Nkunku, Marc Guiu and Armando Broja to choose from as the focal point of his attack. Broja, at least, is likely to leave before the new season starts. However, they also have several players, including Palmer, who can play at number 10 or as a false nine, not to mention a whole battalion of wide attacking players.
They are, therefore, not short of options, but have they finally found the solution in Pedro? Following the semi final victory over Fluminense, Gareth Bale noted that he was impressed with more than just Pedro’s goals, saying, “It’s the link-up play, it’s the passing, it’s the vision. It was a great all-round performance.” Others were equally struck by the player’s performance, with Callum Wilson saying, “What a signing he could turn out to be.”
The Brazilian, currently Chelsea’s number 20, was withdrawn after 60 minutes but by then the damage had been done and he had shown what he was capable of. His xG for the game was just 0.27 but from that he produced two goals – albeit that his xGOT was “only” 1.06. He only had three shots and that is just the sort of efficiency that the club have been lacking, with the likes of Jackson seemingly needing several good chances in order to score once.
Although the club may use him chiefly as a striker, Pedro can also play on the left or behind a number nine. Even when deployed as the main man, he likes to drift all over the pitch and that was very evident against his boyhood club. But the key thing Maresca will hope he can bring is goals and on his debut, in the quarter final against another Brazilian side, Palmeiras, he again showed how efficient he can be.
In that game he played just 36 minutes, coming off the bench. In that short time he created two chances and had two shots, with one of those on target, where he turned xG of 0.09 into xG on target of 0.40. As in the semi, he also had more touches than Chelsea’s attackers have typically had, with these spread around the pitch.
It is early days for Pedro and his Chelsea career but the signs are certainly very encouraging. If he can forge a good relationship with Palmer and the club’s other varied attacking threats, and go on to score 25 league goals, then perhaps he can help spearhead a genuine title challenge at Stamford Bridge next term.
How Chelsea Reached the Final
| Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Group Match 1 | Los Angeles FC | 2-0 win |
| Group Match 2 | Flamengo | 3-1 Loss |
| Group Match 3 | ES Tunis | 3-0 Win |
| Round of 16 | Benfica | 4-1 Win (AET) |
| Quarter Final | Palmeiras | 2-1 Win |
| Semi Final | Fluminense | 2-0 Win |
Returning to the here and now, Pedro will hope he can help his side claim some silverware in the final. The Brazilian has given himself a great chance of starting in the final and it will be interesting to see what side Maresca opts for, in terms of how he might see his best XI ahead of the Premier League season.
As said, Chelsea beat Fluminense 2-0 in the semis and they got past Palmeiras in the quarters, winning 2-1. In the round of 16, they were taken to extra time by Portuguese giants Benfica after the game ended 1-1. Angel Di Maria forced extra time with an equaliser in the 95th minute but the Blues scored three in extra time to win with ease in the end.
Prior to that, they played three games in Group D where, somewhat surprisingly, they failed to top the pile. Another Brazilian club, Flamengo, pipped Chelsea by seven points to six, in large part due to beating the Blues 3-1 in Philadelphia. However, straightforward 2-0 and 3-0 wins over Los Angeles FC and Esperance de Tunis, respectively, were enough to see them progress.
The Final
The final of this competition will take place on Sunday, the 13th of July and, like both semis, will be played at the MetLife. That stadium is home to both the New York Giants and the New York Jets and should see a full house of over 80,000 for Chelsea’s clash with PSG. Kick-off is at 3 pm local time, or 8 pm in the UK, and it will certainly be the Blues’ toughest test yet.